Those belting out show tunes in this West Village piano bar might not realize it marks the site where Thomas Paine died in 1809.

Hidden behind a gate in Greenwich Village is a little farmhouse that once served as the writing studio of a bestselling author.

Curious crustaceans support an obelisk from ancient Egypt that now stands in modern-day Central Park.

This small-town pizzeria won the Hollywood lottery.

With some 500,000 books across five buildings, this bookstore is a reader's paradise.

A decidedly out of place statue memorializes the Blues Brothers characters at this water bottling plant.

An old whaling station now serves to give the public a look at the commercial whaling industry, no longer a part of Monterey's economy.

One of the most elaborate displays of Jellyfish is on display at the aquarium.

Offering commanding views of the California coastline, this restaurant was a hub for the artists and bohemians of Big Sur.

Haunting and beautiful trees, doomed to die.

This private residence was the template for one of the most beloved television homes of all time.

This Big Sur waterfall drops 80 feet directly into the Pacific Ocean, and inspired the hillside house up top.

Aqueducts have dramatically changed this old lake, now home to tufa towers and its very own species of tiny brine shrimp.

This shop specializes in oddities and Victorian-inspired wonders.

Few things look more out of place than the electric blue ponds in the reddish-brown desert of Utah.

The fifth-longest natural arch in the world, and the longest outside China.

Once a menacing challenge for trailblazers, this trail is now the most scenic drive in Utah.

One of the world’s largest living advertisements is made out of pine trees.

The pioneering photographer's prints are immortalized inside her childhood home.

A graffiti Mecca welcoming artists from around the world.

A former seaside jewel built for the everyman is now simply a neglected art deco fortress.

A collaborative art project that transformed a neighborhood in NYC's Queens.

Holding the most bodies of any cemetery in the United States.

The factory that helped produce a dominant form of lighting before Thomas Edison.